TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2026 (10) TMI 170
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....hat Assessee was prevented from sufficient cause in not filing the appeal in time and accordingly, we are inclined to condone the delay in filing of appeal before the ld CIT(A). 3. The Assessee has raised Ground No. 1 challenging the validity of framing of reassessment by the Faceless Assessing Officer (FAO) for the year under consideration. This goes to the root of the matter, being a preliminary legal issue, we deem it fit and appropriate to take up the same first for adjudication. 4. We have heard the rival submissions and perused the material available on record. The return of income for AY 2016-17 was originally filed by the assessee on 03.08.2016 declaring total income of Rs. 7,30,160/-. The case of the assessee was sought to be reopened vide issuance of notice u/s 148 of the Act on 30-03-2021. In response to the notice, the assessee failed to file return of income and did not file any reply to the notices issued thereafter, which prompted the ld FAO to frame the assessment u/s 147 r.w.s. 144 r.w.s. 144B of the Act on 15-03-2022 after determining total income of the assessee at Rs. 84,87,560/- as against the returned income of Rs. 7,30,160/-. The ld CIT(A) dismissed the....
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....me escaping assessment has been notified only on 29-03-2022 and hence the Faceless Assessing Officer could not have assumed jurisdiction at all over the assessee to frame the re-assessment on 15-03-2022. When this fact was confronted to the ld DR, the ld DR submitted that CBDT had come out with Notification No. 60/2020 dated 13-08-2020 for faceless assessment scheme; thereafter CBDT had come out with yet another Notification No. 6/2021 dated 17-02-2021 followed by amendment brought in the The Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of certain Provisions), Act, 2020, inserting Section 144B into the Income Tax Act, formalizing procedures like electronic communication, record authentication and automated drafting. Accordingly, the ld DR vehemently argued that faceless assessment scheme was already in force prior to 29-03-2022 (i.e. the date of issuance of notification by CBDT). Hence, the Faceless Assessing Officer had validly assumed jurisdiction over the assessee to frame the reassessment order on 15-03-2022 for the year under consideration. We are unable to comprehend ourselves to accept to this proposition of the ld DR inasmuch as, if the faceless assessment scheme were ....
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.... under Section 142(1) of the Act dated 16-11-2021 together with the questionnaire was issued by the Learned JAO f) Notice under Section 142(1) of the Act dated 13-12-2021 was issued by NeFAC Delhi i.e. issued by Faceless Assessing Officer (FAO). g) Show cause notice dated 21-3-2022 stood issued by the FAO to the assessee h) Reassessment stood framed under section 147 r.w.s. 144 read with section 144B of the Act on 26-3-2022 determining total income at Rs 20,92,400/-. i) Faceless scheme for income escaping assessment under section 151A of the Act stood notified on 29-3-2022 vide Notification No. 18/2022 by Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT). 6. Now the moot question that arises for my consideration is as to whether the Learned FAO could assume jurisdiction to frame the re-assessment proceedings before the issuance of Notification No 18/2022 dated 29-3-2022 under section 151A of the Act or not? In this regard, it would be relevant to reproduce the provisions of section 151A of the Act which reads as under:- "151A. Faceless assessment of income escaping assessment. (1) The Central Government may make a scheme, by notific....
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....ar view was taken by the co-ordinate bench of Mumbai Tribunal in the case of L E Meilleur Global Trade Private Limited Vs. ITO reported in 189 taxmann.com 286. For the sake of convenience, the entire order is reproduced:- "This appeal is filed by the assessee against the order of ld. Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeal) / National Faceless Appeal Centre, Delhi, vide DIN: ITBA/NFAC/S/250/2025-26/1082214081(1) dated 31.10.2025, passed against the assessment order by the Assessment Unit of the Income-tax Department u/s 147 r.w.s. 143(3) and 144B of the Income-tax Act, 1961 (hereinafter referred to as the "Act"), dated 31.03.2022, for the Assessment Year 2013-14. 2. Assessee has raised the following grounds of appeal: Additional Grounds raised for 1st time 1.0 On facts and circumstances of the case and in law, the assumption of jurisdiction by the National Faceless Assessment Centre (NFAC) on 30/12/2021 is bad-in-law, since the scheme for faceless assessment of income escaping assessment prescribed u/s. 151A had been notified by the CBDT w.e.f. 29/03/2022, thereby consequential re-assessment order passed u/s. 147 is void ab-initio; 2.0 On fac....
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....sessee has raised additional grounds of appeal through a separate application placed on record. In this regard, submission of the assessee is that the aforesaid additional grounds are on the jurisdictional aspect of the assessment which goes to the root of the matter and the relevant facts in this regard are already on record. Therefore, they need adjudication by admitting the same. Since, nothing objectionable came out from the other side on their admissibility, the same are admitted for adjudication. 2.2. Assessee has raised the jurisdictional issue through additional grounds which goes to the root of the matter, we are inclined to take up first the additional ground no. 1, challenging the assumption of jurisdiction by NFAC on 30.12.2021, making the impugned reassessment order void ab initio. It is an undisputed fact that the ITA 9347/Mum/2025 Le Meilleur Global Trade Pvt Ltd A.Y. 2013-14 present case before the Tribunal is against the order passed u/s 147 r.w.s. 143(3) and 144B for which the case was reopened by issuing notice u/s 148 on 31.03.2021, after taking prior approval of the competent authority i.e. ld. PCIT-4, Mumbai u/s 151 dated 31.03.2021. Copy of this appr....
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....1.11.2020. The said section is reproduced for ready reference: "Faceless assessment of income escaping assessment. 151A. (1) The Central Government may make a scheme, by notification in the Official Gazette, for the purposes of assessment, reassessment or re- computation under section 147 or issuance of notice under section 148 or sanction for issue of such notice under section 151, so as to impart greater efficiency, transparency and accountability by- (a) eliminating the interface between the income-tax authority and the assessee or any other person to the extent technologically feasible; (b) optimising utilisation of the resources through economies of scale and functional specialisation; (c)introducing a team-based assessment, reassessment, recomputation or issuance or sanction of notice with dynamic jurisdiction. (2) The Central Government may, for the purpose of giving effect to the scheme made under sub-section (1), by notification in the Official Gazette, direct that any of the provisions of this Act shall not apply or shall apply with such exceptions, modifications and adaptations as may be specified in the notification:....
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.... by its publication by way of notification in the official gazette for the purpose of making of assessment of total income or loss of the assessee under section 143(3) or section 144. Here also, there is a requirement to lay the said notification before each House of Parliament once it has been ITA 9347/Mum/2025 Le Meilleur Global Trade Pvt Ltd A.Y. 2013-14 issued. It is important to note that sub-sections (3A) to (3C) were inserted by the Finance Act, 2018 with effect from 01.04.2018 which is much prior to section 151A. 6. Before us, learned counsel for the assessee brought on record the two separate notifications, notified by the Central Government in the official gazette, one in respect of provisions contained in section 143(3A) and other in respect of provisions contained in section 151A(1) and (2). 7. The first is notification S.O. 3264(E), [Notification No. 61/2019/F. No. 370149/154/2019-TPL] dated 12.09.2019 having its short title and commencement as "E-assessment Scheme, 2019" which shall come into force on the date of its publication in the official gazette. Clause 2 of this notification contains definition and at sub-clause (iii) "assessment" means asses....